Eva x Alaster (SEVENTEEN!)

[Robodwarfs18]

Congratulations!!

[Mama2six]

Ok, the coloring in this litter is absolutely stunning. The babies are 2 weeks, 6 days. Here are some pictures...

Eva-and-Baby-Tort.jpg
Everybody.jpg
nest2.jpg

[Mama2six]

1-Dove-Tort-looking-around.jpg
Dove tort

2-Black-face-2.jpg
Black

3-PEANUT-BUTTER-Dove-Tort-and-White-body-2.jpg
This is the one I was hoping for, and I am sure we are keeping. Her name is Peanut Butter, and she is a Dove tort and white. I believe she is even going to be long-haired, even with a SH father (known to carry LH) and a SH mother (pedigree not known). Yay!

4-Black-Tort-and-White-helping-out.jpg
Black tort and white

6-Dove-Banded-back.jpg
Banded dove

[Mama2six]

5-Dove-hand.jpg
Dove

7-Black-face.jpg
Black

8-Black-chin.jpg
Another black

9-Dove-Tort-back.jpg
Dove tort (back view so you can see the coloring)

10-Black-Tort-absolute-cute-face.jpg
Black Tort - ABSOLUTE CUTENESS!!!

[Nancy's Hamsters]

I like your keeper and adore the little Dove tiddler pup in the over head shot of the whole litter. Nice litter, I'll enjoy seeing them as they grow.

[Mama2six]

11-Black-Tort-face.jpg
Another black tort

12-Dove-Tort-hand.jpg
Another dove tort

13-Black-Banded-carrots.jpg
Banded black with his carrots

15-Black-Tort-and-White-top.jpg
Black tort and white, top view

[Mama2six]

16-Dove-hand.jpg
Another dove

17-Black-Tort-and-White-side-2.jpg
And, finally, another black tort and white!

We have only been handling this litter for about 4 days, and tonight, 8 of the 17 walked onto my hand willingly! This is fast progress!!!

The last litter we raised was extremely friendly, and I'm hoping for a repeat.

The "type" is not perfect. Mom is a smaller hamster, and so I suspect they might not all grow as big as some of our hamsters. (My kids joke that some of them look like guinea pigs, they are so big...) This is our first "serious" tortiseshell litter. I have 2 lines of yellows going, and hope to ultimately develop the line so that the hamsters are not only different varieties of yellow, but that they also have excellent type. This litter marks significant progress in that direction.

[Mama2six]

Nancy, what is a dove tiddler pup? I can't figure that one out.

[Mama2six]

I get to pick 2 more to keep from this litter, especially if more turn out to be long-haired. I'm thinking a regular tort (no band), and possibly a male.

ALL of the torts are females, and ALL of the others are males. The last time I bred a tort and white to a non-yellow male hamster, I ended up with 2 yellow black males, which didn't happen this time, even with all of the babies! Is that just coincidence, or am I missing something here? (The previous litter only had 5, and 2 of the males were yellow-black)

Any suggestions as to the other keepers?

Many of the babies seem to have nice, wide-set eyes, which is a quality a lot of our other hamsters do not have.

[Nancy's Hamsters]

Originally Posted by Mama2six

Nancy, what is a dove tiddler pup? I can't figure that one out.

LOL it is a nick name for that much smaller Dove guy on the right side of the carrier bin

Originally Posted by Mama2six

I get to pick 2 more to keep from this litter, especially if more turn out to be long-haired. I'm thinking a regular tort (no band), and possibly a male.
ALL of the torts are females, and ALL of the others are males. The last time I bred a tort and white to a non-yellow male hamster, I ended up with 2 yellow black males, which didn't happen this time, even with all of the babies! Is that just coincidence, or am I missing something here? (The previous litter only had 5, and 2 of the males were yellow-black)

Your missing understanding the Yellow gene. Yellow is sex linked to the X gene so a Yellow female bred to a Non Yellow male(as was the case in your 1st litter) Can only produce Yellow color males and Tort females BUT that is if the Mom is Yellow when Mom is Tort she has one Yellow gene to pass and one Non yellow gene. There fore she can produce Yellow Males and Non Yellow males, Tort females or Non Tort females. So any yellow pups are from her passing on her yellow X gene on and any Non Yellow means she passed on her X Non yellow gene.

With a YB male bred to a non yellow female your male had two genes for Black and 2 genes of Yellow so ALL His X genes would pass on his YB genes but all his males would gain his Y gene which is Non Yellow. Which is why all your females ended up Torts and all your males Non Yellow.

Where do you live? If in the future you might raise a Black Tort litter that doesn't carry Cinnamon I may be interested in a Black Tort Band to use to my Chocolate lines.

Originally Posted by Mama2six

Any suggestions as to the other keepers?

Biggest, and wider head with great temperament no matter the color or pattern would be which I would go for. OH and a SH with more quality should not be over looked even if your focused on LH.
IF Mom wasn't a Dove I would have been interested in the Black Tort Band girl in the first group of photos that had your Dove Tort band girl in it.

Originally Posted by Mama2six

Many of the babies seem to have nice, wide-set eyes, which is a quality a lot of our other hamsters do not have.

For your other 2 keepers I would focus on those which have this type head, and then size too as in the USA we need to all focus on improving size and consistently getting size in our future litters.

This is just a suggestion for you As I found myself keeping too many pups from one litter, and then falling into a problem of too much inbreeding when every litter I had was going back to that litter I kept so many pups from. I myself would only keep the best Male and Female, as You will need quality outcross blood as any pups from either keeper will be by pedigree 1/2 siblings and will quickly breed back in all those faults you are trying to be rid of.